The Progressive State Committee opposes The State Budget

The following statement was passed unanimously by the Progressive Party State Committee on Sunday, May 21st, 2023. The Statement opposes the current version of the Vermont State Budget.

"The Vermont Progressive Party stands against the current iteration of the state budget for Fiscal Year 2024. A core principle of our platform is that housing is a human right. The current version of the budget would take that away from thousands of homeless Vermonters– pushing them out of temporary housing and onto the streets by removing support currently provided by the General Assistance program.

As it stands, the version of H.494 that sits on Governor Phil Scott's desk would dramatically ramp down the state's housing program for our most vulnerable residents. By the end of July, roughly 3,000 Vermonters would be left without a place to live, and forced to seek out already critically limited shelter placements, sleep on streets, or in parks. This can translate into increased rates of incarceration and hospitalization, and will create costs far greater than those required to increase Vermont's supply of state-owned temporary housing.

What we are faced with now is a symptom of the long-term failure to prioritize real solutions to the housing crisis. For decades the legislature has kicked the can down the road while burning money in the process on temporary hotel lodging band-aids that provide ready fodder for our opponents who can easily point to the poor optics and wastefulness of such an approach.

We are immensely disappointed in the Administration and General Assembly in their failure to create a humane transition out of the emergency housing program into long-term supported housing. With Democrats and Progressives having a supermajority in the General Assembly, no one should be coerced into voting for legislation that does not align with their values. Furthermore, giving into such pressure with thousands of lives on the line should not be an option— but here we are.

We can simultaneously invest in housing for the future while continuing to shelter those that currently rely on our support. Our Party representatives will not support any budget that leaves out thousands of people who they are elected to represent, and our party membership holds strong in our belief that housing is a human right. We strive to set a higher standard that prioritizes dignity and safety for all."